It is known to provide a protective firearm housing for mounting to an ATV and the like, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,634,530 issued to Black on Oct. 21, 2003. The Black mounted firearm case comprises a protective gun housing with an opening on the top through which a firearm may pass. The firearm case comprises three portions: a protective firearm housing, a soft firearm case and a mounting assembly. The protective firearm housing is connected to a mounting assembly designed to attach to handle bars. The firearm housing is designed to outline the shape of a hunting rifle and the soft case, used to protect the firearm, is inserted into the firearm housing. The mounting assembly comprises brackets to hold the firearm housing and mounting collars for attachment to the handlebar. An alternative embodiment further comprises an opening in the firearm housing that is closed by a hinged cover.
One disadvantage of this type of firearm case is that it does not provide a locking feature to keep the firearm safe from theft. Furthermore, although the protective housing of the invention provides a shell to keep the firearm safe from nicks or being banged by foreign objects and from mud, dirt and water being splashed while driving an ATV, this shell does not provide for a protective cage during crashes.
It is also known to provide a permanently mounted gun safe that has a hinged cover and lock to a motorcycle as in U.S. Pat. No. 7,143,913 issued to Lindsey et al Dec. 5, 2006. The Lindsey gun safe is sized and shaped to conform to a conventional handgun. The gun safe is bolted through the back wall of an inner surface to a flat area on a motorcycle, so that it cannot be removed without unlocking the gun safe. Although this firearm case does keep the firearm secure from theft and weather elements, it is not easily accessible if the firearm is needed quickly.
It is also known to mount a firearm to an ATV longitudinally or laterally as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,382,484 issued to Savant May 7, 2002 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,915,273 issued to Allen Apr. 10, 1990 respectively. The Savant firearm rack discloses a firearm mounting bracket that is attached to a cargo rack assembly of an ATV. A rigid firearm boot is removably received into a loop shaped mounting bracket by a latch assembly that cooperates with a retaining loop of the firearm boot. Although the Savant firearm rack discloses a protective cover and lock for a firearm it is lacking because it only discloses how to mount the removable firearm boot in a longitudinal direction only on an ATV, and is not applicable for a motorcycle.
The Allen firearm rack discloses an assembly for mounting a firearm to an ATV comprising a butt end bracket and a forearm bracket that are attached to a rectangular tube. The tube may be attached to the rear frame of an ATV so that the firearm is in a lateral orientation. Although the Allen firearm rack allows for the lateral mounting of the firearm to an ATV or a motorcycle, the disadvantages of the Allen firearm rack is that it does not provide a cover to keep the firearm safe from inclement weather or in crashes and it does not provide a locking system to keep the firearm secure from theft.
In addition, it is known to provide a locked storage compartment on a motorcycle as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,252,171 issued to Augustine, Jr. Aug. 7, 2007. The storage compartment discloses a compartment with a lock mounted on the rear fender of a motor cycle so that the access door faces forward. Some disadvantages of this storage compartment are that it is not large enough to contain all varieties of firearms and it does not provide a quick unlock feature to access the contents quickly. U.S. Pat. No. 6,729,516 issued to Hanagan, May 4, 2004, discloses a quick change storage compartment for mounting on a rear fender of a motorcycle.
Holsters have been designed to attach to the side of a motorcycle. The open frame allows a handgun to be attached to the side of the motorcycle. These holsters have a lock for safe keeping. Also closed storage boxes that are attached to a motorcycle have a lock to secure items within the box.
What is needed is a firearm case that s secures and store a firearm to a motorcycle or ATV which keeps the firearm safe from dangers such as theft, crashes and inclement weather, yet allows the firearm to be accessed easily and quickly.